DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 11-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 11, line 8: the phrase “evaluating a recorded position of the measuring device” is unclear.
Claim 17, lines 9-10: the phrase, “evaluating a recorded position of the measuring device” is unclear.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 11-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kataori et al. (JP 2011-163981).
Regarding independent claims 11 and 17, Kataori et al. discloses:
a device for non-contact recording of a position of a measuring device 18 relative to a rail 10 of a track, the device comprising:
a laser device 20a for projecting a laser beam and a camera or recording a projection of the laser beam (“laser displacement meter” [0018]}; the measuring device being coupled 14 to a rail running gear 9, 12 that is movable on the track and the measuring device being aligned in relation to the rail running gear in such a way that the laser beam can be projected both onto the rail and onto an side of a wheel 11 of the rail running gear; and an evaluation device 22 configured for evaluating a recorded position of the measuring device in relation to the side of the wheel. The method as claimed will substantially be performed when the Kataori et al. device is used in accordance with its disclosure.
However, the prior art does not disclose that the device is positioned on the inner side of the wheel. It is old and well-known to move the position of a measuring device on a device being measured for the purpose of measuring the device at a different location. Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to move the measuring device of Kataori et al. from the outer side of a wheel to the inner side of the wheel for the purpose of making measurements on the inside of the wheel.
Regarding dependent claims 12-16 and 18-21, the features of these claims are all obvious and well-known variations of the features taught by Kataori et al. Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to vary the Kataori et al. in any of the manners claimed based on end user and/or manufacturer preferences.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to G. BRADLEY BENNETT whose telephone number is 571.272.2237. The examiner can normally be reached M-TH, 8:00-6:00.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Peter Macchiarolo can be reached at 571.272.2375. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571.273.8300.
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/GEORGE B BENNETT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855
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6 JUL 2026
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